Parents, on the brink of disciplining their children, are notorious for saying, “This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.”

For generations, children have not believed them at all.

But that line could easily serve as Missouri’s new motto when it comes to the way we punish or investigate elected officials.

It’s true the most effective way to deal with an out-of-favor official is at the ballot box, but in some cases, outright removal isn’t the answer, while in other cases, removal needs to happen posthaste.

That’s why we have other tools — or at least we pretend to.

Last summer, a pair of lawmakers came under fire for social media posts that were, at best, inappropriate and, at worst, potentially violent.

Commissioners, we’re worried something inappropriate is going on here. Care if we take a look around? Not really? All right, thanks for your time.

And just this month, we learned that the Missouri Ethics Commission would be unable to conduct business due to three vacancies. Board and commission positions must be filled routinely, and that’s often a job of the governor.